People in rural Manitoba are being discriminated against by the provincial health system, says the official opposition.
“There seems to be a move to treat people in rural Manitoba as second-class citizens,” said Progressive Conservative leader Stuart Murray.
He and another Tory MLA attacked the NDP government in question period two days running over rural access to the meningitis vaccine and rural access to Winnipeg’s specialized health centres.
Murray said his MLAs are finding a pattern of rural people being excluded from medical services offered to people in Winnipeg. That isn’t fair, he said. “This government has to govern for all of Manitoba.”
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But NDP MLA Stan Struthers denied Murray’s claims, saying “our government is committed to treating all regions of Manitoba fairly in everything we do.
“We are very aware of the special circumstances of Manitobans living in remote areas.”
PC health critic Myrna Driedger said it was unfair of the government not to offer vaccinations for meningitis to rural children if their parents asked for it. Children in Winnipeg, where there have been a number of cases of the disease, can easily obtain a free vaccination. But parents of rural children have to track down the vaccine themselves and pay for it.
Murray described the health department’s policy as “cold-hearted.” He also attacked the health department for forcing rural people to use rural health services even if Winnipeg facilities are closer. He said as a result rural Manitobans have to travel farther and sometimes are forced to use inadequate facilities .
In a News release
news, Struthers said Murray “is not well acquainted with the facts” about rural health care.
He said the government has done several things to improve rural services, including a new plan to retain and recruit rural doctors and doubling the amount of money given the ambulances outside Winnipeg.
Murray said Struthers’ quick reaction to his attack showed the government does not want Manitobans to think rural people are treated unfairly.
“I’m glad they’re sensitive,” said Murray. “I just hope they take action.”
